Defend The Faith

Meditations on Second Corinthians

May 22, 2023

Defend The Faith

I have faced danger in the cities, in the deserts, and on the seas. And I have faced danger from men who claim to be believers but are not.

2 Corinthians 11:26b

Read: 2 Corinthians 11:21b-33

Last week, I noted my belief that Paul was fighting for the life of his church. Paul was making his point so strongly because he believed there were false apostles at work in Corinth. Paul noted that even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light, so we can expect that his servants will follow suit and try to pass themselves off as servants of righteousness. In today’s passage, Paul reveals the many difficulties he had experienced in furtherance of his calling to proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ.

Today’s reading is helpful in learning how you tell the difference between an authentic servant of God and a servant for the enemy of God. A servant of God continually edifies Jesus, and by their life they reveal they are willing to lay it all on the line for the cause of Christ. False prophets are all about themselves, and their comfort. No false prophet would suffer through all the hardships Paul went through. When the going gets tough, the false prophets have business elsewhere. When the going got tough, Paul would forget “what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on towards the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:13-14).

My Takeaway: The Holy Spirit has been impressing me with the price paid by our Apostolic Fathers to proclaim the Good News. I am hearing the Holy Spirit asking me to respond to the challenge of Jude, the brother of Jesus: “(I urge) you to defend the faith that God has entrusted once for all time to his holy people.” (Jude 3)

Sē’lah

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(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

 

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com.

 

Copyright © 2023 by Alex M. Knight

 

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.